Top 10 Tips for Writing Purchase Offers

1. Use the Correct Form

2. Determine Price

Some courts have ruled that offers containing acceleration clauses such as "I will pay $1,000 more than your best offer," do not constitute a bonafide offer. You have a price in mind. Put it in writing.

3. Make an Initial Deposit

In most states, to have a binding offer, you need to make a good faith deposit. It could be cash, personal check, cashier's check or other modes such as personal property, real property, mortgages or unsecured promissory notes.

Spell out who will hold the deposit -- almost anybody but the seller!

If your state has "liquidated damages," the seller could be entitled to retain your deposit if you default under the contract.

4. Disclose your Down Payment

Your down payment could be cash, promissory notes, stocks, real estate or other assets. Generally, it is readily available cash. Some states require verification of your down payment within a certain time period. If you are selling an asset such as liquidation of a mutual fund to receive cash, that action could be considered a contingency of the transaction and, if so, you should disclose it.

5. Name Financing Terms

Please remember that your deposit, when added to your down payment and financing should equal the total consideration paid.

- Some contracts allow you to specify a maximum interest rate, giving you a way
   to cancel the deal if your interest rate comes in higher.
- Disclose the type of financing you hope to obtain: conventional, FHA, VA,
   contract of sale, assumption or other.
- Include maximum points, especially if you are asking the seller to pay them.

6. Include Contingencies

Federal law gives all buyers 10 days to inspect for lead paint, unless waived in writing. Many contracts carry provisions for such contingencies as:

- Appraisal

- Loan Funding

- Physical Inspections.

Depending on your state law, if you do not remove your contingencies in writing, they may still be in effect, all the way to closing!

7. Address Possession Succinctly

My experience shows more battles are fought over possession than are ever necessary. Some deals fall out because sellers and buyers have unreasonable expectations about possession.

- Spell out the possession date. It is on closing? A day after closing?

- If possession is prior to closing, to protect all parties, execute a rental agreement.

- If possession is more than two or three days after closing, execute a rental 
  agreement to protect the buyer.

8. Spell Out Who Pays the Fees

Although most contracts call for fees to be negotiable, some fees, depending on your locale, are customarily paid by one party. If you don't know custom, you may be unintentionally inviting a counter offer. Call the listing agent before you write the offer and ask. Sometimes fees for title, escrow, county or city transfer taxes can equal one to two percent of the sales price. For example, if the seller is paying for title and it's customary for the seller to choose, let her choose.

9. Request Special Reports

If you are concerned about a specific inspection, request a report. Few disputes irritate a seller more than to find out halfway through a transaction that the buyer had a concern that was not addressed upfront. Sellers feel duped. Buyers feel mislead. Address the issues you want discovered. Some states allow the buyer to conduct all inspections before writing the offer just to alleviate this type of miscommunication. If it's customary for a seller to provide certain reports, ask for them.

10. Clearly State Expiration of Offer

- Deals sometimes fall through because buyers did not allot enough time for a seller to respond to the offer. If you are unsure, call the listing agent and ask how much time is required. Sellers can be out of town or have emergencies.

- Clarify to whom the accepted offer should be delivered. If it's the buyer, and the buyer is unavailable to accept delivery, the buyer could lose the transaction if another buyer popped up out of nowhere.

- Read your state contract laws regarding offer expiration.